Becoming deputy mayor isn't an act that requires a swearing-in, said Robert Warfield, Mayor Bing's director of communications.

"Any time that the Mayor goes out of town, the mayor automatically names him deputy mayor and he's acting mayor while the mayor is out of town," Warfield explained.

Warfield said Bing had already planned to be in Washington, D.C. this weekend for a personal trip. Bing, a seven-time NBA All-Star, was supposed to attend a reunion of his old Washington Bullets teammates at the
Washington Wizards game this weekend in D.C.

"Unfortunately, he wasn't able to make the trip because of the hospitalization," Warfield said. "That document had already been put into place; we will simply extend it now through the period that he's going to be out."

"That's standard operating procedure," Warfield added.

As Mayor Bing's chief of staff, Kirk Lewis is often named deputy mayor
-- a result of the two men's close professional relationship during Lewis' tenure as president of The Bing Group, where he was employed
for 15 years. Bing appointed Lewis his chief governmental and corporate
affairs officer for almost a year after being elected mayor of Detroit. After
leaving Bing's staff in March 2011, Lewis was re-hired as Chief of Staff in June 2011.

Bing's director of communications also estimated that the mayor's duties will be limited for "a couple of weeks."

"Physically, he's going to be out of the mix," Warfield said. "He'll be able to participate in any decisions affecting the city, as he always has been, he just can't dance right now. Can't do the jig, that's all."